Wednesday, January 29, 2014

NEWS RELEASE: JANUARY 16-21, 2014

January 16, 2014

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Academy holds out hope for improvement at MLK school
The fate of an almost entirely minority Broward County public school could rest in the hands of a group of caring mentors who are racing to effect improvements and avoid its closure. The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School, located at 591 NW 31st Ave., Lauderhill, scored an “F” grade on the most recent Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test, or FCAT; only 27 percent of students are proficient in reading and 25 percent scored satisfactory or higher in math.

Administration Calls For Schools To Limit Use Of Zero Tolerance Policies, Police Officers For Routine Student Discipline
The damage done by zero tolerance policies has been covered here several times. Recently, we noted more schools were dropping these policies in favor of something more nuanced and leaving fewer routine disciplinary problems in the hands of on-campus police officers. The positive effects of these actions were immediately noticeable. Broward County, Florida schools witnessed a 41% drop in arrests in a 66% drop in suspensions after their zero tolerance policies were abandoned.

 
January 18 -21, 2014

Broward County Schools Try to Teach Parents to Cook to Their Kids
The district is trying to get lower income parents more involved with all aspects of their kids’ education, including choosing good, healthy nutrition over fast food.

Redesigned schools see boost in enrollment, technology
Broward's bold move this year to radically transform a cluster of failing and underenrolled schools is already showing results — infusing new resources, technology and additional students into the campuses.